Shell CEO prepares to step down next year

SHELL has shortlisted candidates to succeed chief executive officer Ben van Beurden, who is preparing to step down in 2023 after almost a decade at the helm, Reuters reported on Friday (Sep 2), citing two unidentified people from the company. 

The 64-year-old Dutch national has steered the company through some of its most turbulent times. The first big move of his tenure was the 2016 takeover of rival BG Group, a major deal that tested the company’s finances during an oil price slump but is paying huge dividends today as natural gas prices soar. 

At the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic, van Beurden made the first cut to Shell’s dividend since the Second World War, a move that upset investors and underscored the seriousness of the global health crisis for the oil and gas industry. He was also the architect of the company’s plan to shift from fossil fuels to cleaner sources of energy and achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. 

The shortlist of candidates to be the next Shell CEO includes Wael Sawan, the company’s head of integrated gas and renewables, as well as Huibert Vigeveno, the head of downstream refining operations, according to the report. It also includes chief financial officer Sinead Gorman and head of upstream Zoe Yujnovich, Reuters reported. 

Shell declined to comment. BLOOMBERG